An study found that Congo mining companies lied about $26.8 billion in income
A state study found that mining companies in the Democratic Republic of the Congo lied about making $16.8 billion in sales from 2018 to 2023. This could mean less money for the government and local communities.
The 2018 mining code in Congo says that companies must give 0.3% of their yearly revenue to community development funds. These funds usually help pay for things like schools, clinics, and water systems.
The country’s Court of Auditors did a financial audit in June that was seen by Reuters on October 5 but had not been reported before. It found that companies gave $81.4 billion to development funds but only $98.2 billion to tax officials.
A report says that $50 million in development funds were lost.
Congo is one of the poorest countries in the world, but it is a major source of cobalt and copper, both of which are needed to make batteries.
The difference caused $50.4 million to be lost in payments to development funds, the report said.
CMOC’s (603993.SS), opens in a new window The TFM for Glencore’s (GLEN.L) opens in a new tab This is Kamoto Copper, Ivanhoe’s (IVN.TO), in a different tab. It said that Kamoa-Kakula mine, SICOMINES, Eurasian Resources Group’s Metakol, and Ruashi Mining all lied about $10 billion.
Number two in cobalt exports, Glencore, said that its subsidiary Kamoto Copper had fully met all of its responsibilities under the mining code. It also said that the difference was due to different ideas about when the law went into effect.
It also said that its 0.3% community levy was based on half-year earnings and had been approved by accountants and the local development agency.
When asked for comments, CMOC, SICOMINES, Ivanhoe, Eurasian, and Ruashi did not reply. CMOC is the biggest cobalt exporter in the world.
When asked about the report’s results, attorney general Jean Chris Mubanga Musuyu said, “Practically 70% of the companies did not respect this regulation… and it’s a huge loss of earnings for the Congolese state.”
The Court of Auditors suggested that the government impose stricter oversight, require income audits, and suspend companies that don’t follow the rules.
NGOS WANT MINES TO BRING IN MORE MONEY
Each person in Congo makes about $580 a year on average. The country has huge amounts of lithium, uranium, and other minerals.
This year, fighting with M23 fighters backed by Rwanda in the east’s mineral-rich areas has killed thousands and forced hundreds of thousands to leave their homes.
Civil society groups pushed for the 0.3% levy so that money could go straight to mining towns, cutting out the middleman and speeding up local development.
Emmanuel Umpula Nkumba of the charity AFREWATCH in Lubumbashi said, “The goal was to see how we can use mining to help people instead of just taking things from them.”
“If this is well managed, it will improve lives on the ground.”
